Hoard – a soul-chilling coming-of-age debut about grief and neglect from Luna Carmoon (Queen’s Film Theatre until Thursday 6 June)

Within 24 hours of watching the film Hoard, I had filled the recycling bin to the brim and was making a plan to deal with the plastic Ikea boxes overloaded with USB cables of varying shapes and sizes. It’s a deeply-affecting film that’s hard to shake off.

The first half hour of Luna Carmoon’s directorial debut is a haunting depiction of a single mum Cynthia and her daughter Maria living in a house that is beyond cluttered. Cynthia’s compulsion to hoard means she heads out at night to hoke through other people’s bins to find wonderful curiosities. As a result, Maria is perpetually tired in school, having spent the previous evening being wheeled around the neighbourhood in a shopping trolley along with the collectables. No teacher ever thinks to stop and ask why she’s tired before scolding her.

Cynthia believes that her treasures are a sign of her devotion towards Maria. Vivid performances from Hayley Squires and Lily-Beau Leach firmly establish the bond between mother and daughter. Little baby rats and the sometimes-illusive household ferret add warmth to the squalor. Every aspect of their lives is obsessive: with a family song or rhyme for every occasion, long duration screams, and vivid imaginations. Hoard is a vision of what happens when someone loses control, with the devastating consequences playing out for those close to them.

Nanu Segal’s stunning cinematography makes a playful scene under a blanket feel like something straight out of Macbeth. Everything screams of the cast having a blast filming the scenes. While Maria’s homelife is distressing, much more upsetting is a man exposing himself to the young girl as she walks home one night. That moment allows the audience to begin to build a hierarchy of neglect and abuse that will be updated in the remaining ninety minutes.

The transition from young Maria to adolescent Maria (Saura Lightfoot Leon) is beautifully handled. Now living in care, we watch the vulnerable teenager adapt to how her foster mum Michelle (Samantha Spiro) runs a household. Watch out for mirroring in the costume palettes. An extended visit by a former foster child Michael (Joseph Quinn) disrupts and thoroughly disturbs as Maria finds ways to reconnect with her birth mother while growing up into adulthood.

Over two hours long, Hoard slightly overstays its welcome. The brilliance of the taut opening setup contrasts with the sprawling analysis of grief and self-harm. But it’s a coming-of-age film that will chill your soul and preoccupy your thinking for days to come.

Hoard is being screened in Queen’s Film Theatre until Thursday 6 June.

 

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